Lacey Sign Ordinance comes under fire – again

Mark Kelly, owner of Liberty Tax Service in Lacey on the corner of College Street and Lacey Boulevard, is having a hard time getting to people to notice his new business.   He has hired someone to dress as the Statue of Liberty and stand on the corner waving a sign.

Kelly would just as soon have a permanent sign to advertise his business, but the City of Lacey’s sign ordinance forbids most signs.

Kelly told the Lacey City Council last night that sign visibility is the number one way for small business to advertise because they can’t afford newspaper ads or TV commercials.   “I think the city ordinances are suppose to be a reflection of the community, but I don’t think this one is,” he said.

Kelly pointed out that the city’s sign ordinance has made the city anti-septic and devoid of character.

Lacey Mayor Virgil Clarkson responded that the city has wrestled with the sign ordinance for years and that it’s a moving developing situation.

After the meeting, Kelly said that “I find it interesting that the mayor acknowledged that many people have voiced misgivings about the sign ordinance but the city refuses to rethink it.”

Other news

Lacey has reached agreement with its largest union regarding wage increases.

The city has agreed to a 2.61 percent pay increase for members of AFSCME.   That union represents about 150 of the city’s 250 employees.  The increase is for the duration of the contract and is based on 90 percent of the Seattle CPI.

The city still has to reach agreements with several other unions.  Staff admit that bargaining with the public safety unions is more difficult because they can go to binding arbitration.